shop fixture

[twelchPTM]

Not sure what section this fits into but I have a question about sheet good storage, I am looking for a vertical storage rack that prevents bowing as well as(or better then) horizontal storage racks. any ideas?

[gene]

If you can find a store that is closing alot of the time you can get pallet racks cheap . A few years ago i bought 20 sections 10'long 10'high for about 900. They work great. also google pallet racks , there has to be some near you

[BTP]

I built shelving That has a 5x8 bottom bay.
Then, I made a 4x8 platform with casters that I use for the sheets. Then just slide it in there.

When the wood truck comes, I roll the cart out there. Load it up, and then pull it into the shop. I can pull it with 15 3/4" sheets all by myself.

Re:Vertical I would worry about scratching etc.

[bleeth]

For the many years I had a smaller custom shop (which I still yearn for!) I always used a vertical rack as typical projects only took a few sheets or so of each type of ply. My racks were a little over 10 feet tall so they would accommodate the times I needed to use taller product and I would have dividers every 12 inches or so so panels couldn't flop over very far and were easy to put in and remove . I used plywood tops and bottoms and 1 x 4 slats for the verticals. Made it easy to blow out and keep clean and can be as wide as you want overall. Even with multiple pallet racks for horizontal storage now I still have one of these for storage of small quantities and cut-offs. Usually I would have one of the sections divided in 2 horizontally for short cut-offs. Bowing was minimal since the bays were narrow and only a little care would keep the leaning angle low. If I had particular concern I could always clamp the panels to the vertical studs so they stayed totally straight. This concept does need some back cross braces screwed to the wall as it is pretty floppy if free standing. Once installed it works great.

[twelchPTM]

Gene - I actually have pallet racks already but they eat up a huge chunk of floor space.And since my shop is a an oddly shaped room floor space is at a premium. The shop actually sit below the ground floor and I have a roll up gate that opens up onto the loading dock, the rack sit right inside so sheets come in the loading dock straight into the shop and onto the rack.
Dave -I have in the past used the method of clamping the sheets to studs, I was just hoping there might be an off the shelf solution.
I do a lot of work with HDPE Plastic sheets (playboard,marineboard/starboard ect. We like to keep a couple of sheet in various colors on hand for quick solutions or small projects but it always works out that the color I need is on the bottom of the stack, and it doesn't tolerate being stored on edge at even a slight angle for even short periods of time.

[bleeth]

I've also done vertical plank racks against the wall that had an angled back to lean them against. You could combine the 2 concepts with an angled side to your rack but I've never seen anything like that offered as a pre-manufactured item.

[waynelocke]

I use a ShopCart, http://www.shopcartsusa.com, They are expensive but very good. I think that a cart will hold 12 - 3/4" panels.I don't buy bundles and find it a good solution for storing and using. I bring panels in with a hoist and never actually lift one.

[beacon14]

Vertical racking is the best way to store small amounts of sheet goods using the least amount of floor space, since it allows you to insert or remove any sheet with minimal effort. Here is what I have done. This is what remains of a larger, double version of what you see. If you make a rack with vertical sides and just stand the sheets up there is nothing to keep them from warping, and if they lean over they will definitely warp. My theory is that you can let them lean, as long as you support them in a flat plane they will stay flat, and the weight of the stack keeps them all flat. The key is you can't leave any open space between sheets or the sheets above the gap will bend. The loose sheet in the middle in the photo was soon stacked up tight to the pile on the right. To the left is where we keep a bunch of misc thin stuff, including sheets and partial sheets of veneer and laminate.

The less obvious benefit of this design is that it keeps all the sheets up off the floor, and because the rack is not as deep as the sheets are wide, the sheets pivot in and out of the rack until the front corner hits the floor, making it easier to load and unload. It's also easy enough to blow the dust out from underneath without unloading the rack first.